Kakegawa Castle

Kakegawa Castle was a Japanese castle in hirayama style and served as the home of several fudai daimyō clans (vassals of the Tokugawa clan) who ruled Kakegawa Domain in Tōtōmi Province. Located on a small hill in the center of Kakegawa, which was a significant post on the Tōkaidō highway connecting Kyoto and eastern Japan since the Heian period, the castle was a key point for controlling eastern Tōtōmi Province. During the Shōwa era, the castle remained in ruins except for the Ni-no-Maru Goten, which was reconstructed after an earthquake and registered as an Important Cultural Property by the government in 1980. Other remnants of the castle include parts of the moats and walls, and a drum house. The main gate from the main bailey, built in 1659, was given to the Yusan-ji temple in Fukuroi and now serves as its main entrance. In April 1994, sections of the innermost bailey, including walls, a tower, and the keep, were restored using traditional methods based on surviving diagrams of the original keep.